The Praetorian Guard
History of the Praetorian Guard The Praetorian Guard was formed by in the year of --- AC. Originally simply called the Praetorian, it acted somewhat as a go-between for young men unable to obtain squireship through conventional means and eventually became a veritable order of independent hedge knights who would eventually earn knighthood through their actions. These knights would then return to the Praetorian Order as it was then known to train other young men. Often knights would 'squire' five to eight young men at a time, the Order even taking on ranks similar to the Goldcloaks of King's Landing which some claimed to originally have been recruited. Eventually the allure of the chance of Knighthood drew the attention of so many that the Iron Throne soon took note. Initially, the Praetorian Order was taken as a threat, after all, an uncontrolled, unaffiliated army of knights could never possibly mean anything but trouble. The Targaryen dynasty would reach out warily to the Praetorian Order, eventually, a tentative agreement would be made and slowly the Praetorian Order was inducted into the dynasty as somewhat of a private army to the Crown ruler of the Iron Throne. The Praetorian Order would evolve into the Praetorian Guard, continuing its ancient practices to this day and continuing to serve the King and Queen of the Iron Throne as they always have. Culture The Praetorian Guard was well known for taking underprivileged young men into its fold to train and educate them to a similar degree of young squires. To this day they continue the practice of knights within the ranks of the Praetorian guard offering sponsorship to young men who prove themselves capable- though nowadays it often takes the correct connection or an extremely impressive feat to be sponsored by a Knight within the Praetorian Guard. Nonetheless, the bond forged between teachers and their students are known to be exceedingly strong as a result of the strong focus upon familial bonds within the Guard. Those often raised alongside one another within the Praetorian Guard often can claim a friend for life. A knight will have no more than 2 students at a time. If a student dies while in training, as many members of the Guard will support their grieving companions as possible during a nightlong vigil in honor of the fallen. Those students whos teachers fall in battle are often quick to find mentors within other Knights who were close to the teacher. Praetorians are trained similarly to Knights though focus heavily upon team-based formations, all are trained in combat on horseback and due to the rather rigid requirements for equipment, only those who can somewhat contribute to equipping themselves are often accepted. (MTBA, to be refined further) Recent History After the Black Feast, the Praetorian Guard was left somewhat in shambles in the hands of its ancient Lord Commander Jorah Thorn. The Lord Commander's already failing health left the Praetorian Guard scrambling to pick up the pieces of King's Landing's shattered state alongside the Goldcloaks. Alas, the chaos that ensued would cripple the Praetorian Guard for months- the final nail in the coffin was the death of Lord Commander Jorah Thorn who passed within his bed after being mute for nearly a month. It seemed as though the Praetorian Guard was crippled, and handed to a young, unpracticed Captain Jerrard Gaunt. Handed a capital in shambles, centuries of crime, crippled morale and a city with no love for them, the Praetorian Guard would soon partner closely with the Goldcloaks of King's Landing who elected Jerrard Gaunt as a joint commander for both organizations under the belief that they would be stronger together. Starting from the 8th moon of the year 400 AC, the Praetorian Guard and Goldcloaks began to forge a bond unlike had been seen in centuries- it seemed the brutality of such an existence simply bound these two unlikely groups closely together as they strived for a better, safer King's Landing.